Boy Leaves Hospital After Possible Meningitis
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The youngest of two San Fernando Valley children hospitalized earlier this week with symptoms of a rare, potentially deadly form of meningitis was released from the hospital Saturday.
The 20-month-old Van Nuys boy was “doing well” when he left Valley Presbyterian Hospital, said hospital spokeswoman Lori Brandt.
Although cultures came back negative, meningococcemia--which is blamed for the deaths of two Orange County girls earlier this year--is hard to identify, according to doctors, and they may never know if the boy and an 8-year-old Sylmar girl actually contracted the disease.
The girl continued to improve Saturday, Brandt said, but remained in the hospital in good condition.
Spread through saliva, the disease can cause a bruise-like rash over the entire body and, if untreated, kill in as few as 24 hours.
There have been 14 confirmed cases of meningococcemia in Los Angeles County this year, none of them fatal, health officials said.
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